Juel, a man of very few words and a sworn enemy of phrase-making, was
perhaps the shrewdest and most cynical diplomatist of his day. His motto
was: "We should wish for what we can get." Throughout life he regarded
the political situation of Denmark with absolute pessimism. She was, he
often said, the cat's-paw of the Great Powers. While Griffenfeldt would
have obviated this danger by an elastic political system, adaptable to
all circumstances, Juel preferred seizing whatever he could get in
favourable conjunctures. In domestic affairs Juel was an adherent of
the mercantile system, and laboured vigorously for the industrial
development of Denmark and Norway. For an aristocrat of the old school
he was liberally inclined, but only favoured petty reforms, especially
in agriculture, while he regarded emancipation of the serfs as quite
impracticable. Juel made no secret of his preference for absolutism, and
was one of the few patricians who accepted the title of baron. He saw
some military service during the Scanian War, distinguishing himself at
the siege of Venersborg, and by his swift decision at the critical
moment materially contributing to his brother Niels's naval victory in
the Bay of Kjöge. To his great honour he remained faithful to
Griffenfeldt after his fall, enabled his daughter to marry handsomely,
and did his utmost, though in vain, to obtain the ex-chancellor's
release from his dungeon.
See Carl Frederik Bricka, _Dansk biografisk lex._, art. "Juel" (1887,
&c.); Adolf Ditlev Jörgensen, _P. Schumacher Griffenfeldt_
(1893-1894). (R. N. B.)
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account